F1 Bahrain GP: Alonso focused on mileage, not on positions

Fernando Alonso says Friday practice is a key part of the weekend for McLaren as it continues to unlock more speed from the Honda-powered MP4-30.

Fernando Alonso says getting more mileage under his belt at this stage of the season remains the priority for McLaren as it looks to maximise its track time and bring the MP4-30 up to speed.

The team scored its first double-finish of the 2015 season with its Honda-powered car during the Chinese Grand Prix, but the Spaniard admits its form fluctuated over the course of the weekend, particularly during the race.

Yet to break out of Q1 in qualifying, Alonso remains sceptical about whether he can fight for Q2 in the Bahrain Grand Prix given the short turnaround from China, but insists its predominant target is not strictly on positions anyway.

"I think the cars are very similar to China - for everybody, not just for us - so I don't think the performance will change so much. The goal is to keep improving and if the track characteristics and the weekend goes well, Q2 is possible.

"There are many things we need to learn. There is a good programme for testing tomorrow, some aerodynamic parts in FP1 and tyre testing in FP2, so this is the key part of the weekend for us, and not to concentrate on positions 13, 15 or 17 - that is the second priority.

"I had only one day in Barcelona with 60 laps, the other days were 15 or 20. Sometimes it wasn't even quality laps, so what we are achieving in the first races is fantastic I am enjoying this process because every part shows us the direction to go. Sometimes it is positive and sometimes it is negative, but it is clear where we go."